Hearts That Bleed
by sweetmaria4u
Summary: He's her best friend's enemy; she's loyal to a fault. He's taken by her; she'd never dare go there. Even still, it's him who forces her out of her shell; his shoulder she comes to lean on; and his arms she feels safest in. Angsty Naley, AU after 1x03.
1. Prologue

**SUMMARY:** How do you fight to be with someone when the biggest obstacle standing between the two of you is them? Angsty Naley, AU to season 1 after Lucas joins the team.

Disclaimer: The characters do not belong to me...

**Hearts That Bleed**

**PROLOGUE**

...Karen's Cafe...

Haley: " You know, it never ceases to amaze me..."

Lucas: "What's that?"

Haley: "That your mom and Deb Scott are best friends, considering – well, you know."

Lucas nods. "Yeah. She's a nice lady." He replies nonchalantly, putting up chairs on the tables as Haley cleans the counter.

Haley: "Who knows, maybe now that you've joined the team, you and Nathan might actually get along. You might even become friends."

Lucas looks up at her with a raised eyebrow.

She chuckles at the absurdity of her own words. "Yeah, you're probably right. Highly unlikely."

Lucas: " I don't know...He invited me to his party tonight." He casually informs her.

Now it's Haley's turn to stop what she's doing to look at him shocked. "Are you serious?"

Lucas: "Yep. Says he wants to welcome me to the team but I doubt he's sincere."

Haley: "Wow. So what are you going to do? Are you going to go?"

Lucas: "Uh, yeah, maybe. Come with me?"

Haley: "Yeah, of course Luke." She agrees, knowing he might need a friend.

He gives her a knowing smile. "Thanks."

He doesn't notice that she blushes.

...Later at the party...

Lucas and Haley walk into the Scott beach house, trying to avoid the dirty looks shot at them and ignoring the whispers they elicited with their unexpected entrances.

Haley:"Why do I feel like I just grew a second head?"

Lucas grabs two cups of beer and passes one to Haley.

Lucas:"I think we both did."

Jake walks over to them and tries to talk over the music."Hey, good to see you bro"

Lucas was glad to see a friendly face.

Lucas:"Hey" he says lifting his eyebrows, acknowledging him.

Jake looks over at Haley

Jake:"Hey, you're Haley right? I'm Jake"

Haley:"Hey, it's nice to meet you"

Jake smiles at her then looks over at Lucas. "Hey, don't worry, about the stares. It gets better."

Lucas clinks his cup to Jake's, appreciatively, saying 'cheers'.

Haley takes a sip from her cup and scans the room, spotting a crowd of people wooing and cheering which gains her attention.

Tree Hill High's elite were playing 'spin the bottle' and Tim's spin had landed on Peyton Sawyer, the atypically broody cheerleader. Haley chuckled when she noticed the annoyed expression on Peyton's face who rolls her eyes and tells him to hurry up so they can get it over with. She understands the sentiment.

Haley then turns to look at Lucas to make a comment but notices his intent gaze is fixated on the group so she looks back and forth between them and Lucas and senses his jealousy at the sight of the clearly awkward kiss.

Her own expression saddens as a result and she accidentally locks eyes with Nathan Scott, Tree Hill's resident bad boy. She stares for a moment but looks away quickly and uncomfortably when he winks at her and she notices him starting to make his way over to her.

She scratches the back of her neck uneasily and tries to look busy but her attempt to avoid him fails when she finds herself face-to-face to him.

An unsure frown appears on her face as he starts to address her and offers his hand for her to shake. "Hi, I'm Nathan Scott."

She crosses her arms and doesn't accept the shake. "I know. I'm Lucas' best friend."

That response earns her a smile as he chuckles at her response. "Well does Lucas' best friend have a name?"

Haley:"We've had the same classes since junior high" she retorts bemused. "Guess a hot-shot like you can't be bothered to remember names. It's a good thing; I'd save up every brain cell too if I were you."

Her spunk amuses him. He likes it. It's then that Nathan notices Lucas standing nearby talking to Jake.

Nathan:"Lucas, wasn't sure you'd make it" he says sounding half sincere.

Lucas:"That makes two of us. Nice place."

Nathan:"Yeah, and this is just the beach house. You should see the main house. Dan Scott goes all out."

Lucas' jaw twitches at the mention of his name. Nathan is inwardly pleased at the jab but covers.

Nathan:"Hey, follow me, I want to introduce you to some people. If you're going to be part of the team you should get to know the guys. It's my duty as captain to help you out" he says cockily.

Lucas shares an unsure look with Haley before they follow Nathan who has already started making his way to the group playing 'spin the bottle'.

Nathan:"Hey, guys!" he shouts over the music and gets their attention. "Cool your hormones for a sec."

He turns to Lucas and points out their teammates. "Lucas, meet Tim, Josh, Mike, Big Steve, Damien, Theresa, Bevin and you know Brooke—", Brooke grins at Lucas, remembering her little stunt in his car "and my girl, Peyton" he finishes as he leans down and captures her mouth in a drawn out tongue-clashing kiss to mark his territory. When he lifts himself back up he mischievously smiles and licks his lips to taunt Lucas.

Nathan:"Guys, this is Lucas" they nod at him. "And uh this is Lucas' best friend" he smirks as he puts emphasis on the last part, focusing on Haley.

Brooke speaks in recognition, holding a cup of beer. "You're Tutor Girl, right?"

Haley:"It's Haley. Haley James."

Tim:"Come join us, Haley. We're playing spin the bottle"

Haley:"I see that, but, uh, I'm good, no thanks"

Tim:"Come on, Tutor girl, let's have a little fun. Get your freak on."

Haley gives a fake smile. "You know, Tim, is it? While the prospect of swapping spit with 6 people at the same time is highly exciting and attractive, I'm going to have to pass, thanks."

Peyton smirks and gets up to go get herself another drink but stops and does a double-take, deciding to invite Haley. "Hey, you want a drink?" she asks, looking at her.

Haley:"Yeah, sounds good."

Peyton:"All right, come on."

Tim looks Haley up and down as she leaves. "Damn, that girl's got a fine ass!"

Everyone around him laughs as the song that was playing comes to an end in time to let Tim's comment resonate the walls. Haley turns around and shoots him a glare and roll her eyes before continuing to walk away with Peyton. Tim wasn't the only one admiring Ms. James' behind though, a certain snotty Scott brother's interest was also piqued by her assets.

Far be it for Tim to quit while he's ahead though.

Tim:"I'd tap that" he says to his fellow teammates, earning a couple of high fives.

Lucas, who had been silently drinking his beer up until now, grabs Tim by the collar and holds him up by the neck.

Lucas:"Don't you ever let me catch you hear you talk about Haley like that again. You got it?"

Tim:"Relax, Dawg. The girl's hot. I didn't realise you two were a thing, you lucky shit."

Lucas tightens his hold on Tim's neck and holds him up higher, obstructing his breathing. "We're not" he hisses. "But I swear you so much as look at her funny, i'll beat you to death. She's off limits. Got it, _Dim?_"

He coughs and struggles to speak.

Lucas:"What was that? I can't hear you!"

Tim shakes his head "yes" in rapid motions until Lucas finally releases him and pushes him backwards, making him land on a sofa.

A part of Nathan was pissed that Lucas was roughing up his friend but he had to admit, he was mildly impressed, not thinking that the bastard had it in him.

Lucas looks around the room and sees Brooke, who was smiling flirtatiously at him, but he ignores her and heads outside to the porch.

Once there, he takes the opportunity to let out the breath he hadn't realised he was holding. He rethinks his decision to have come to the party and runs his hands through his hair in frustration. It's not soon after that Nathan comes out to join him.

Nathan:"Hey man, the guys and I are going to go for a drive, you want to come?"

Lucas:"I don't know, I think i'm just going to go home."

Nathan laughs "Come on man, don't be lame. The night is young. It's Friday. What, do you have homework to do or something?"

Lucas gives him a classic broody look as he thinks about the offer and although he remains sceptical about Nathan's newfound civility towards him, he decides to accept.

Lucas:"All right, lead the way."

"That's what i'm talking about" Nathan replies pleased and adds "Meet me around the back" before walking off.

...Out back...

Nathan is talking to the whole team, excluding Lucas and Jake.

Nathan: All right, listen guys, he's going to be out any minute. Remember, on my cue."

A couple of the guys looked uneasy, and one speaks out.

Mike:"Listen, man. I feel bad for the guy—"

Nathan interrupts quickly when he notices other team members nodding in agreement.

Nathan:"Look, you guys are the ones I feel sorry for. Me? I'm going to get my minutes. But you guys have been busting your tails since the junior leagues. Now you finally get your shot and Whitey gives the starting spot to this guy? It's not right. If you ask me, he shouldn't even be on the team."

Tim: "Homie, I'm down for whatever you got cookin'. I got your back." After the public humiliation Lucas had caused him earlier, he was happily willing to return the gesture.

Nathan:"We're gonna make him earn it. At least make him suffer like we did." Nathan stops when he notices Lucas approaching and clears his throat and alerts the teammates with his eyes.

Lucas walks up to them and a van pulls up behind him.

Tim: "Hey, Luke. Lets go, lets go! Get him in! Get him in!"

Two teammates run up behind Lucas as he turns toward the van. They grab him, bag his head, force him into the van and drive off.

Once at their destination, Nathan drives up to the van in his own car and two guys force Lucas out of the car, pulling the bag off his head in the meantime. Lucas struggles to get free but they push him into a nearby stream. Nathan walks up as Lucas stands up, very angry, and frees his hands.

Lucas looks angry enough o beat Nathan to a pulp as he stands still with closed fists in mud-soaked clothes.

Nathan: "Well, well. Now, see, normally this is when you become part of the team. We'd have a keg, tell some war stories… but you had to know that wasn't going to happen, right?"

Lucas:"You're going to pay for this" he fumes.

Nathan:"What are you going to do? Drown me with your tears?" That earns him some laughs from his teammates. "Look… these guys made a choice to back me. But we're going to be nice, and we're going to let you walk away. Just quit the team, man. Otherwise, it's going to get ugly. Let's get out of here."

He turns to leave and the guys follow suit but Lucas hurls himself at Nathan, turns him around and punches him to the floor. He gets a few more punches in until Damian and Tim grab a hold of him and hold him back, arms behind him, chest open and unprotected.

Nathan wipes away blood from his lip and grunts before he throws a few cheap shots back at Lucas while the boys keep him steadied.

Nathan:"You know, I was willing to play nice, but just for that, i'm going to teach you a lesson."

He turns to the team to address them. He tells them of their next plan and by the time he's done, they've got Lucas tied up to a tree like a scarecrow with a single letter written across his chest.

Nathan smirks in satisfaction. "A big ol' B for Bastard...that's what you are after all. Your own dad wishes you were a blood stain on the sheets. "

This strikes a cord in Lucas and he spits in Nathan's face as retaliation but the latter acts unaffected.

Nathan:"Quit the team, _bro,_ or believe me, you ain't seen nothing yet." He starts walking away. "Oh, and, by the way, stay away from Peyton."

Tim: (mock) "Bye, Luke."

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AN: Hey Guys! Thanks for reading! So this was just a starter to the fic, hope you like it so far. Stay tuned for a major and unexpected twist in the next chapter that leaves both Nathan and Lucas astonished as hell! This is the big event that will change everything and makes both worlds clash...Please review to let me know your thoughts, it would really mean a lot!! Thanks :D


	2. Chapter 1: A Twist Of Fate

**Disclaimer:** The characters of One Tree Hill do not belong to me...yada yada yada...

**Hearts That Bleed**

**Chapter One: A Twist of Fate**

Haley gets tired of the party, decides she wants to leave. She looks for Lucas but after a half an hour of searching, she realises that he must have already left. She checks outside to see if his truck is there, and to her surprise, it is.

She decides to keep looking for him some more. Not paying attention to where she's going, she bumps into someone's chest and he reflexively slips one hand on the small of her back and the other holds her hand to keep her from falling. The male asks her if she's okay and she pays him no attention and thanks him, while continuing to scan the room as she tells him she's fine.

Nathan:"A little high on yourself, aren't you? Going around telling people you're all fine"

The familiar, cocky sound of his voice snaps her out of her search for Lucas to face him only to see a huge grin plastered on his face. She resists the urge to roll her eyes and looks down to find his hands still firmly on her waist and looks back up at him. "You can unhand me now."

Nathan:"I have a better idea" he replies as he pulls her petite frame closer to him, close enough to feel her breath on his face.

Haley groans unimpressed as she tries to free herself from his grasp. "Are you always such a pig?"

He pushes her waist back a few inches and releases her. "Only around you, I guess you bring it out in me." he flirts.

She ignores his lame attempt at come-ons and continues to scan the room for Lucas.

Nathan:"Looking for someone?"

Haley:"Yeah, Lucas. Have you seen him?" she asks turning to him.

Nathan hides a grin as he remembers where he left him. "I'm pretty sure I saw him leave a while back. Yeah, I think he left with some chick."

Haley's eyes narrowed at that, a tinge of jealousy reflected in her eyes. "That doesn't sound like Lucas, he wouldn't leave without making sure I had a ride home."

Nathan:"What can I tell you? I don't this he was thinking with his head when he was leaving."

Haley:"But his car's still outside" she states confused.

Nathan starts to get panicked. Haley wasn't letting up.

Nathan:"What are you his keeper or something? Maybe they took hers. Wait a minute..." Nathans lip curls upwards, a thought occurring to him. "Am I sensing jealously here? A little 'Joey loves Dawson' scenario? "

Haley gives him an absurd look. She starts to get highly defensive. "What?? Noo, no, believe me, so not the case."

Nathan:"Yeah, you like him don't you? I think it's cute—" he teases her. He likes the way her cheeks become flushed and her eyes widen in panic.

Haley:"Of course not. If you must know, Lucas and I are strictly friends, nothing more, nothing less."

Nathan:"But you'd like it to be more?" he pushes.

Haley:"No. He's my best friend. We care about each other but not in that way. I guess it's not a wander that a womanizer such as the almighty Nathan Scott can't grasp that there can be such a thing as a platonic relationship between a guy and a girl. It doesn't always have to be sexual, you know.

Nathan:"But it's more fun that way"

He smirks, she crosses her arms.

Nathan puts his hands up surrenderingly. Hey, whatever rocks your boat" he starts to laugh as he walks away.

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...The Next Morning at Karen's Cafe...

Haley comes into the cafe and finds Karen serving coffee to a couple of customers.

Haley:"Morning, Karen".

Karen looks up and a smiles appears on her face. "Oh, Haley! Hi, must have been some party last night, huh?"

Haley gives her a confused look. "What do you mean?"

Karen:"I couldn't get Lucas to wake up this morning. He came home pretty late last night."

Haley feels it again, a knot in her stomach at the thought of Lucas having spent the night with another girl. She opens her mouth to speak but Lucas walks in, hoodie on his head.

Haley:"Rise and shine, Lucas." She puts a fake smile when all she wants to do is punch him for ditching her last night for what she can only assume was to have random sex with a random girl.

Karen:"Come eat your breakfast, you have a few minutes before you have to get to school" she motions for him to sit at the counter before going to serve another customer. He obeys and comes around to the stools but groans as he grabs at his side to soothe the pain he feels when he tries sit down.

Haley notices and grows concerned at his distressed state.

Haley:"Lucas, you all right?"

Karen comes back to the counter. "Honey, what's wrong?"

Lucas still hasn't looked up at them, trying hard to avoid what would be their inevitable questions once they notice the scars on his face.

Lucas:"I'm fine, just a little numb still from yesterday's practice. Plus, I slept on my side for too long."

Karen doesn't buy it and neither does Haley, the tone of his voice betraying him.

The doors to the cafe open once more and this time Peyton comes in and heads towards Lucas and the moment Lucas sees her, he sinks his head lower, knowing full well that his attempts at keeping the events of last night secret were now shot to hell.

She smiles at Haley. "Lucas – you all right? I wanted to see how you were doing after last night."

This grabs Karen's and Haley's attention and the curiosity they felt a moment ago triples. Haley couldn't help but feel resentful of Peyton, wondering if it was her who had spent the night with him.

Karen:"What happened last night?" she probs.

He finally lifts his head up to face her and she gasps when she notices his bruised eye and his cut lip.

Karen:"Lucas—"

Lucas:"Mom, it's worse than it looks, trust me." He tries to reassure her.

Haley:"Who did this to you, Luke?" her tone was upset and hoarse.

Lucas doesn't answer. Karen and Haley both look up at Peyton for answers.

Peyton looks at Lucas unsure if she should say anything but Karen demands to know the truth and tells Peyton and Lucas to not even think about lying to her so Peyton does as she is told.

Peyton:"It was Nathan and the guys' stupid idea of a prank. They drove him down an abandoned road. They roughed him up real bad then tied him to a pole and left him there. I heard some of the guys joking about it back at the party so I went to get him."

Karen and Haley were both horrified.

Peyton didn't have the heart to tell Karen about the rest.

Karen couldn't believe it. "How can kids be so cruel?" She cups Lucas' face with her hands. "We need to get you to a hospital. You should be checked out for internal bleeding."

Lucas gets up and grabs his backpack. "I'm fine, Ma. I don't need to go to a hospital. I'm going to be late for class." He says as he gives her a kiss on the cheek and walks out of the Cafe. Haley and Peyton both offer Karen a sympathetic look before following him. Karen tries to get him to come back but it was too late, he was already gone.

She heads for the phone and decides there is no way in hell she can let this continue, picks up the receiver and starts dialling. When the other person picks up, all she says is "It's me. We need to talk."

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...Later at School, in the Hallway...

Haley is at her locker taking the books she needs for her next class, all the while distracted by her guilt over what happened to Lucas. She couldn't believe how selfish she had been; jealous and making up scenarios in her head while that was the furthest thing from the truth. More than anything, now, all she feels is overwhelmed with anger. Anger towards Nathan. She recalls the stupid satisfied smirk on his face when she had asked him where Lucas was.

She's brought out of her thoughts by loud laughs down the hallway and sees Nathan and his friends high-fiving each other, no doubt basking in the glory of having humiliated Lucas and thinking they've achieved their goal of getting him to quit the team. Haley slams her locker shut and walks over to the crowd, ready to give Nathan her piece of mind, standing right in front of him.

Again, he grins at her, checking her up and down. "Well, well, well, Ms. Haley James—"

Haley:"Do you feel like a man?" she asks angrily.

Nathan's eyebrow furrows. "Excuse me?"

Haley:"Do you feel big and bad because you beat up Lucas while your friends held him down? What, can't fight your own battles by yourself? Afraid he would've kicked your ass otherwise? pause... Are you that threatened by Lucas' being on the team--?"

Nathan scoffs, getting in her face. "Listen, little girl, you have no idea what you're—"

Haley:"No, you listen!" she spits back, not intimidated by him. "You can go around acting all high and mighty like you own the school but you know what the sad thing is? People like you reach their peak in high school, you'll never be higher than you are now. Heck you'll most likely end up with a beer belly, 40 pounds overweight while your wife cheats on you every night with your so-called friends behind your back, while smart, kind hearted people like Lucas grow to be more successful than you could ever hope to be! So You can work your whole "I'm Nathan Scott, Mr. Big Shot, scoring my touchdowns" all you want because-"

Nathan was getting red. "I don't even play football" was the only lame comeback he could come up with.

Haley: "Whatever. The point is at the end of the day all your bluster and BS don't mean anything in real life cause it doesn't care and neither do I. Back off Lucas, and for God sakes, grow the hell up." She throws him a look of disgust before walking away.

Haley's outburst had drawn in a crowd, who was impressed by the girl's feistiness. They cheer her on and people start to whisper, looking at Nathan as he stands there, embaressed. He looks around him, pissed as hell. Even his own friends were laughing.

Tim snickers. "Dude, you just got told off by a girl"

Nathan's temper flared. "What are you looking at?!" he yells, and the stares divert as he storms off.

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...Later in English Class...

Mr. Smith: "Early in his career, Hemingway was frustrated. He was a good writer who wanted to be great. And eventually, he discovered that less is more. That in mind, let's try an activity. Peyton" he starts addressing her. "Describe Lucas using just one word."

Everyone turns to look at Peyton to see what she's going to say.

Nathan looks at her, giving her a warning with his eyes. Peyton thinks back to the basketball game Lucas sucked at. "Choke."

Everyone laughs at her comment. She mentally berates herself for letting Nathan control her.

Mr. Smith: "Okay, be quiet please. Thank you." The teacher turns to Lucas. "Care to respond and describe Peyton?" he asks him.

Lucas looks at Peyton.

Lucas:"Lonely."

The class "Oohs."

Mr. Smith again tries to settle down his class to continue the activity. "Okay, be quiet please."

Nathan raises his hand. After Haley humiliated him, he needed to do something for damage control.

Mr. Smith: "Yes? Nathan?"

Nathan:"I can describe Lucas in one word" he says all too willingly.

Lucas glares at him.

"Bastard."Nathan lets the word escape his lips slowly to assault Luke's ears.

The class Oohs again, but this time, louder than before, knowing the history between the Scott brothers, anticipating a fight.

Mr.Smith:"Alright, alright, alright, alright."

Peyton looks shocked, not believing Nathan just said that. Lucas tightens his fist as Nathan's comment sends him off the edge, especially after what happened last night. Not caring where he is or who's around, he jumps out of his chair and attacks Nathan. The two proceed to fight.

Mr. Smith: "Knock it off" he tries to get between the two of them but it's a full-out-war. Pause "Knock it off!"he shouts again, grabbing Lucas who was on top of Nathan, having the upper hand.

Both boys were roughed up pretty badly.

Mr.Smith:"Scotts! Go to the principal's office!"

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... That same night...

Lucas:"Mom, you're acting kind of strange, what's going on?"

Karen stops doing inventory. "I got a call from your principal today" she lets him know, disappointed.

He bows his head, knowing where this was going.

Karen: "So, are you going to tell me about the fight or you want to just assume I know about it while I yell at you?"

Lucas looks at Haley, asking for help with his eyes.

Haley:"Is that the phone? I'll get it." The phone's clearly not ringing but Haley gets up anyway.

Karen: "Still here."

Lucas:"Mom, he had it coming. You know he said-"

Karen: "No. When they called me today, I was certain they had the wrong Scott. And then they told me they had two Scotts and I could take my pick. Honestly, Lucas, fighting in class? Fighting at all?"

Lucas: "The guy was being a jerk."

Karen: "And this is suddenly a surprise to you? He hasn't been a jerk before?"

Lucas: "No. He's always a jerk--"

Karen:"Listen Lucas, I don't care who started it, I brought you up to know better. Violence doesn't solve anything. This feud between you and Nathan has got to stop. In fact, things_ are_ going to change—"

Before Karen has time to finish her sentence, the door to her Cafe opens and in walk Deb and Nathan. Lucas stands up from his seat, frowning and ready for battle. Karen puts her hand on Lucas' shoulder as if to tame him.

Nathan looks around pissed and confused, seeing Lucas, Karen and Haley. "What the hell are we doing here? Why the hell would you drag me here of all places?"

Nathan didn't come to the Cafe very often, in fact he could probably count the times in one hand. He hadn't made an effort to come here, not even when his mom became co-owner of the joint.

Deb comes in and she and Karen greet each other, nodding their heads as if to signal something while Nathan doesn't budge from the entrance.

Nathan:"I'm leaving. Whatever it is you have to tell me, mom, you can tell me at home. I'm outta here."

Deb:"Hold it. Nathan, if you walk out that door, you can kiss basketball goodbye."

Nathan scoffs. "Please, you know dad would never allow that." He turns to leave.

Deb: "Nathan! Please, honey, just give me five minutes... This is important to me." She pleads with him.

Nathan sighs. He hates it when his mother gets like this. He doesn't want to hurt her so he agrees, turns back around and approaches the group and looks down at his watch. "Five minutes."

Haley didn't once take her eyes off the mother-son interaction. She thought for sure he'd leave. 'Guess he's not completely self-possessed' she thinks, noting his concern for his mother's feelings.

"What's this about, Mom?" Nathan and Lucas both ask simultaneously. Annoyed, they both give each other dirty looks.

Karen:"Hello, Nathan." She tries to sound as civil as possible despite wanting to rip into him for what he did to her son. "Nice eye" she tells him.

Nathan looks at Lucas with a satisfied grin. "You should see the other guy."

Lucas twitches.

Karen brushes it off. "Deb and I have something to tell you, boys. You might want to sit down for this" she says, motioning to a nearby table. Neither budge though.

Haley feels uneasy about the whole situation, knowing this is a family affair.

Haley:"Uh, I should go. I have to –"

Lucas:"No, stay." He tells her. She looks at Karen and Karen nods, so she sits back down.

Karen:"All right, then. There's no easy way to say this, but make no mistake, this is a done deal. Nothing you could say or do will change our minds."

Deb:"Karen and I have been talking and – well first, let me just say that we're very disappointed by the way you two have been acting towards each other."

Nathan looks at his mom:"What? Are you sending me to boarding school or something? Cause you can't do that, my life is here—"Nathan starts a mini-tantrum.

Deb:"Relax, Nathan. I'm not sending you anywhere."

Karen turns to Lucas. "You on the other hand—"

Lucas starts to get riled up. "Me? Wha- what are you talking about mom? And, I still don't understand what any of this has to do with them_?_ " he questions as he lifts his arm to point to them.

Deb:"Lucas, honey just –"

Lucas:"You're not my mother" he seethes, stopping her.

Karen:"Lucas!" she scolds him.

Nathan wasn't liking where this was going. Most of all, he hated having this talk in front of Lucas. 'What the hell is going on?' he thinks to himself.

Karen:"Ok. Here's the deal. You both have this—this huge animosity towards each other and that's very unfortunate. We realise that it's not entirely your fault, you've been brought up to hate each other."

Deb:"Your father has pitted you against each other since the junior leagues and that's not fair to you—You've been robbed of the chance to grow up as brothers because Dan was too much of a coward to be a man and take responsibility for you, Lucas." She says as she turns to him. "And Nathan, I know that things have gotten worse since your father has been putting pressure on you to get Lucas off the team by any means necessary."

Lucas raised his eyebrow, this tidbit of information being knew to him. He hadn'd realised what Dan's involvement was.

Nathan wasn't liking being put on the spot. "Whatever, Mom. Can we have this Dr.Phil session somewhere else—"

Deb ignores Nathan's comment.

Karen:"We just want this to stop. We don't want you to end up with so much hate in your heart that you two end up killing each other.

Nathan:"Would you spit it out already?" he raises his voice, growing impatient.

Deb takes a breath, preparing herself. "Lucas and Karen are going to be moving in with us."

Lucas' head shoots up. "What?!" He turns to look at Karen. "Is this some kind of sick joke?! Mom, have you lost your mind?!"

Haley's mouth gapes open.

Nathan:"No way in hell! I won't allow it!"

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**Author's note:** Whew! All right, there it is, the major twist that changes it all. Love it, hate it? Please let me know what you think! Thanks so much again to the people that reviewed, it means a lot to me, keep 'em coming! :D

What happens next?


	3. Chapter 2: The Gift That Keeps on Giving

**Disclaimer:** The Characters do not belong to me but to the CW and the writers of the show.

**Chapter Two – The Gift That Keeps on Giving**

Deb:"Nathan, honey, calm down--"

Nathan:"Calm down?! Mom, are you freakin' _nuts_?!"

Lucas approaches his mother disbelievingly. "Mom, if this is a joke, it's really not funny--"

Karen:"This is no joke. We're quite serious about this."

:Lucas:"This isn't possible" he murmurs under his breath. "Mom, I don't believe you. I know you can't possibly be serious."

Karen:"I am, Lucas"

Lucas:"you can't _honestly_ expect me to live under the same roof as Nathan--"

Karen:"I can, and you will--"

Lucas is baffled. "Mom, what is _wrong _with you??" he looks at her but feels like he doesn't recognize the woman in front of him.

Nathan joins in, disgusted as hell. "Are you guys that hard strapped for cash that you're taking a handout from my mom??"

Deb's mouth grew wide in horrification. "Nathan-!" she yells, gasping.

Nathan pays her no mind and continues, determined. "Listen, if that's that case, I got a trust fund, I can go to the bank right now and withdraw more money than you've probably ever seen in your life." He pauses and waits until Karen makes eye contact with him. "You want it? It's yours!"

Karen shakes her head, not letting his words affect her. Lucas was too focussed on his mom as well as shocked and confused at this point to register what Nathan was saying. That was until --

Nathan: "It wasn't enough that you hooked my mom into investing in this stupid cafe, now you're invading her home too? That's messed up! Friends don't mooch off of their friends. Leeches!"

Deb explodes at his behaviour. "Nathan, ENOUGH!"

Lucas was fuming now, snapped out of his thoughts. Blood rushes fast to his face and he swears he's about to pop a nerve.

He runs over to Nathan and grabs him by his varsity jacket, brings his fist mere inches from his face, the urge to beat it to a pulp growing irrisistably so.

"You watch your filthy little mouth about my mother" he seethes warningly. "Shove your silver spoon up your spoiled-rotten ass, my mom doesn't take handouts from ANYBODY."

Far be it for Nathan to know when to stop. "Well, it sure as hell doesn't look that way" he adds, daringly.

Lucas' fist finally makes contact with Nathan's face, crashing into it with much force.

Before they know it, Nathan retaliates with a punch of his own, pushing Lucas back onto a table as both it and he fall to the ground, and sounds of glass breaking resonates throughout the cafe. It's not long until Lucas recuperates and kicks Nathan hard, tripping him and the two are on the floor at it again for the second time that day.

Karen and Deb yell pleadingly for them to get off each other and try to separate the two but the pleas fall on deaf ears. They watch in horror as they watch their worst fears unfold.

Shortly after, there's a shrieking scream along with shattering plates; scary enough to snap everyone's attention out of what they're doing, succeeding in breaking up the fight.

They all turn around, spotting Haley standing on the counter, massaging her throat.

Haley:"Jeez, what does a girl have to do to get your attention around here?" she half jokes, trying to lighten the mood.

The brothers both looked at Haley as if to ask, 'what gives?' as Lucas looked annoyed, and Nathan unimpressed. They were both breathing heavily and wiping away at the blood on their bruised faces. Deb and Karen were grateful for the interruption.

Lucas:"What the hell was that?"

Haley:"uh, have you not heard a word Karen and Deb have said? This is exactly what they don't want to see happen again. Fighting like cavemen isn't exactly helping your case, Luke.

"She's right." Karen chips in and sighs. "In fact, If I wasn't sure before that this was the right thing to do, I sure as hell am now. Things cannot continue going on like this. You need an intervention now, more than ever."

Haley quietly comes down from the table, realizing that things were going to get much more intense.

Deb agrees. "Your little brawl there just sealed your fates."

Karen turns to her son. "Lucas, start packing."

Lucas was not giving in.

Wait!" Nathan interrupts before Lucas has a chance to say or do anything. "there is no way in hell i am letting this happen!" he repeats.

Deb scoffs at his choice of words. "Let? Frankly Nathan, you don't have a say in this."

Nathan:"Fine, you know what? If he moves in, I'm moving out."

Deb smiles.

This annoyed Nathan. "What? You don't believe me? I'll do it, watch me."

Deb:"Oh honey, you haven't had to take care of yourself a single day in your life. You don't even have a job, how will you afford a place to live?"

Nathan:"I have my trust fund." He says matter-of-factedly.

Deb:"Oh no you don't. You can't touch a penny of that money until you turn 21."

He stops and thinks for a minute, she's got him there.

A smirk forms on his face, a thought occurring to him.

Nathan:"Wait a minute, I can't believe I hadn't thought of this before. I bet I know somebody who has a say and who would never let this happen."

Deb:"What is it now?" she asks, humouring him.

Nathan:"Oh, you must know who I'm talking about, right mom? You know-- Dad? Your husband?"

Nathan starts laughing smugly, pleased. There isn't a doubt in his mind that Dan Scott would never open his home to his bastard son. Heck, he'd denied Lucas' existence since the day was born.

Deb tensens quickly but brushes the feeling off as soon as it hits her, standing firmly behind her position.

Deb:"Oh, don't you worry about your father, I'll take care of it. I'll deal with him"

Nathan:"Yeah, you go ahead and try, mom. I'm sure that'll go over real well. Nobody 'deals with' Dan Scott, mom. We both know that."

Deb: "Believe me, he will not be a thorn in my side for much longer."

Nathan's eyes narrow at her underhanded comment. He notices a shadow of a glint in her eyes that disappear quickly. "What the hell does that mean?"

Deb:"Nothing. We'll talk about it later, in private."

Nathan scoffs. "Why hold back now? You threw privacy out the window the second you decided to have this charade in front of these people. Tell me now – what did you mean?"

"Nathan, I don't think now is a good time"

"Just say it mom"

Deb shares a look with Karen, and Karen nods, encouragingly.

Deb sighs. "Ok." She walks over to him. "First, I want you to know that-"

"Don't try to sugar-coat it, just tell me."

Deb:"Your father and I are getting a divorce" she blurts.

His eyes widen, the news taking him by surprise. Disapointment and defeat appears on his face.

'Whoa' Haley mutters under her breath. Lucas looks over at her and then back at the mother-son duo.

"What? – Mom... I just spoke to him yesterday. He didn't mention anything--"

Deb:"Yes, well, you have to know that this has been a long time coming Nathan—"

Nathan:"A long time coming? Mom, so you argue every now and then, big deal, no relationship is perfect. You'll work it out—"

Deb:"I'm afraid it's much more complicated than that, sweetie."

Nathan:"Don't give me that. Don't patronize me and talk to me like i'm a kid. Why don't you un-complicate it for me? Make me understand how you could throw away a 17 year marriage over some petty arguments."

Deb doesn't know where to begin to respond.

"Mom, I know dad can be a jerk sometimes but just give him a chance--" he tries to plead.

Deb:"I've given him plenty of chances honey, over and over again but I just can't live with him anymore. The put-downs, the lying, the cheating--"

Nathan's head shot back. "Wait, the cheating? Dad's been cheating on you?"

Deb bends her head slightly. "That surprises you? Really? Because he's never around, and he's always traveling. Why would a dealership owner need to go on so many 'business trips', Nathan?"

Nathan looks at her, hurt and angry, something in him clicking. Even still, there's a pang in his chest because all he wants is to keep his family from falling apart. His mouth and his heart aren't at the same pace and he quickly jumps from concerned to defensive.

Nathan:"Yeah, well if I remember right, you had an affair with your tennis coach when I was younger and dad forgave you." Deb looked around uncomfortably at the mention of her indiscretion.

"Don't you think it's a little hypocritical for you to turn your back on him when he gave you a chance? Can't you forgive him too?"

Deb:"I can't believe you're asking me this. That was not the same thing! When I—slipped, I was going through a hard time, it was right after I miscarried Summer, and it only happened once in a moment of weakness! I _needed_ to feel close to someone and your father was never there. I would hardly call it an affair. But your father? he has mistresses in _three_ different states! Do you really condone what he did? Would you really respect me if I take him back?"

It pisses him off that he can't think of a single comeback to try to pacify her so he hits below the belt and he knows it too.

Nathan:"Well maybe he needed someone too! Maybe if you weren't so cold all the time, he wouldn't have had to go somewhere else to get from someone else what he wasn't getting from you!"

Deb's hand lands on Nathan's face in a slap.

He looks away from her, shame in his eyes as they land across the room, on Haley's. He scoffs when he remembers that they've got an audience and he hates that he was ambushed into this position, the secrets that have come out and the things it makes him say.

"You know, mom... do whatever you want" he runs a frustrated hand through his hair. "You will anyway. Not like what I care or want actually matters, right? So go ahead and force all this on me, just don't say I didn't warn you." He fixates his eyes on Lucas before he continues."Don't think I'm going to make this easy for anybody."

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**Author's note:** Hi everyone! First of all, I'm so sorry for taking so long to update this story. My laptop broke down a couple months ago and i just got it back 2 weeks ago and I had finals and assignments so i'm truly sorry. I hope you liked this chapter, the next one or the one after that will definitely have more Naley scenes. PLEASE REVIEW  It would seriously mean a lot.

Spoilers:

Haley goes looking for Lucas in a vulnerable moment, broken and needing a friend, but finds Nathan instead. What will happen?


	4. Chapter 3 : Nothing's Changed At All

**AUTHORS NOTE: **Hey guys! Im truly sorry for the late update! Ive been really busy working full time and taking a full time summer semester at school _and_ I had a bit of writers block. But now i have a clear idea of where this is going so im going to try my darndest to have another update up within a week. Its just hard sometimes to portray the emotions I want in the characters, hard to write..Anyway, I hope you enjoy it...Please review!

OH, also...this chapter is M rated...there are some sexual themes not suitable for everyone.

**Chapter Three:**

His eyes open to the blaring sounds of his own music, his ears banging, rap and hip hop bouncing off the walls; just another way he'd found to piss off his nemesis of a brother. It baffled him still; in a mansion of 8 rooms, they had to sic him in the bedroom next to his. It's like they were asking for another fight to break out.

Lying on his bed, he moves his arm away from his chest to scratch an itch, knocking an empty tequila bottle to the floor in the process, the clanging too much for his ears. He turns over on his back and onto his other side, noticing the body sprawled out beside him; honey gold curls covering her face. His arm reaches out, pushing the hair away from her face and moving down to her shoulder in warm caresses.

It had become a routine of his; turning to booze, partying and sex in order to numb the pain of his parent's divorce and the added stress of having _Pucas _under the same roof as him. The others didn't see what it was doing to him though; most either envied him for just being Nathan Scott, certified bad boy and womanizer while others pitied him for having a chip on his shoulder. He'd convinced himself that with the exception of the two closest to him, to everyone else, he was the clichéd high school jock who, as Haley had put it, would reach his peak in high school and crash and burn in real life. She didn't know it, but her words had cut deeper than she realised.

It's not long till his soothing motions on her arm makes her eyes slowly flutter open.

He grins, gives her one hungry look and she returns it with one of her own. He leans in closer to close the gap between them but she moves away; gets up off the bed and walks towards the door wearing nothing but his t-shirt. He stares at her back confused until she stops briefly in her tracks to look at him.

As she slowly takes off her panties and drops them to the floor and continues to the bathroom, her intentions become clear to him. A second later he jumps off the bed, following closely behind her.

As he joins her, she turns on the water to a temperature just right and steps back into it, letting the water soak her hair and cascade down to her breasts, perking up. She runs her hands through her locks and opens her mouth to lick her lips, tasting the liquid droplets. He closes the distance between their torsos, presses her up against the wall, steadies her arms above her as he takes her, gets deep inside of her. Her thighs wrap around his waist and moans escape her mouth. She wants to scream from the toxic sensation of the feel of him entering her only to slip out teasingly, not sure she can last long without him firmly between her legs. She brings one hand down onto his buttock and presses him hard inside of her. It's not long before the hand moves up

to his back to leave scratches with every mount of pleasure.

It's quick and almost over, but a gasp from the doorway turns him around as he pulls out of her.

He smirks at the sight of her.

"Never pegged you for a voyeur, James"

She rubs her eyes in rapid movements, thinking this is a dream until she realises it isn't and she really has caught him in the buff and in the act no less. His companion covers herself behind him, embarrassed.

"Enjoying the view? Is this why you've been spending the past few nights here? Hoping to catch a glimpse of me?"

Haley's eyes widen at his accusation and dart away from his bulge as she mumbles a quick "Sorry", turning to leave, her face flushed horrified at being caught staring.

Instead, she bumps into a wall ungraciously.

Her clumsiness amuses him. "Why the rush? Want to join?" He taunts her.

She turns back around. "Bite me"

She watches as he passes a towel to Peyton to cover herself up and he wraps one around his waist.

"Kinky. However you want it" She shoots daggers at him while trying to avoid looking at his naked, dripping self and suppressing a blush. He really wasn't too bad to look at, she thought.

"In your dreams" she dismisses.

"Nah, just yours" He's quick to respond.

"Uh - I'm going to go" Peyton finally says as she holds tightly onto her towel, embaressed, walking past Haley. She nods and smiles at the girl awkwardly on her way out.

Haley turns to leave again, cursing underneath her breath for always getting herself in the weirdest situations.

"Hey, wait" Nathan calls out to her. She stops momentarily by force of habit, thinking he may actually apologize for being an egotistical ass.

Instead, the response she's met with is true to form. "I showed you mine so it's only fair you show me yours"

She frowns, rolling her eyes. He was having too much fun at her expense.

"You know - it's called a lock" she manages to speak once she gets over the initial shock. "You should try using it. Spare us both the embarrassment. Not everyone wants to be subjected to an early morning, live, porn show."

"Who says I'm embarrassed?" he cocks his head, grinning.

She shakes her head. It figures that that's the only part of her comment he paid attention to. "Right, well. Carry on. Or – or don't" She stops herself, stuttering, when she realises what she's saying. "Whatever. Just please hurry up, I need to use the bathroom."

"I don't blame you. I'd need a cold shower too if I were you. Most girls usually do, and that's after seeing me fully dressed."

She scoffs. "Believe me, I'm not like most girls"

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An hour later at school...

"Hales, thanks for coming over last night. I think I would have gone crazy without you there."

"Sure thing, Luke." She doesn't bother telling him about her run-in with Nathan. Figures he has enough to deal with. Finding out he was toying with her would only agitate Luke more.

"Hey" She grazes his shoulder comfortingly. "Has it gotten any easier, being there, since you moved in two weeks ago?"

He sighs. "Heh. Not so much. He does everything he can to piss me me off or irritate me."

"I'm sorry, Luke. Have you tried talking to him? He did get hit pretty hard that night with his parent's divorce. "

"Are you kidding? I doubt the guy is losing any sleep over it. If it's not the team he has over pulling pranks, hiding my stuff, he blasts his music all night long or has orgies in his room. Seriously. Did I mention the walls are paper-thin? The guy is on a mission."

It saddens her. She remembers when they were younger and he'd wanted nothing more than to have a little brother.

"I still can't believe my mom went through with this. I don't think she realises how hard it is for me to live there. It's – it's a constant reminder of what I was deprived of. But..." he pauses. "What gets me the most is that – Dan got my mom and Deb pregnant a couple of months apart...so...why did he chose to be a father to her baby and not my mom's? What made me any less important?"

He looks away thoughtful, not wanting her to see how much it really pains him.

"I don't know, Luke" she tries to offer sympathetically.

"Anyway" he continues a moment later. "The whole house is full of pictures of Nathan and Dan. Nathan even put one next to my bed of them together when he was younger and Dan looks so proud of him. And the worst part is, i'm in that shot, in the background looking pathetic at the two. And you know what Nathan did Hales? He put a big ol B on my face..."

He doesn't need to finish the sentence for her to know what the B was for.

Haley stayed quiet throughout this whole thing, her heart silently breaking for him.

"You know what I think?" She finally speaks.

"What?"

"He's put you through enough of his crap." She looks at him determined. "I think it's time to get even"

His eyebrow raises in interest. "What do you have in mind?" he asks putting his arm around her shoulder as they walk to their lockers.

"If there's one thing Nathan Scott values above all else, it's his own vanity" she starts thinking out loud, remembering the constant theme in every encounter she's had with him.

"Uh huh...?" he moves his arm probingly for her to continue.

"It's safe to say that his reputation matters to him alot"

"Right..." he nods his head, waiting for her to continue.

"So if there's one way to bring him down a peg or two, it would be –" she waits for him to catch on.

"Social humiliation" he concludes.

She smiles, loving how they're always on the same wavelength. "Exactly."

"You're quite the little deviant Ms. James" he says proud, steadying himself with one arm on the wall towering Haley as she leans against it.

"I have my moments" she grins, enjoying the close proximity. "Speaking of the devil.."

She motions her eyes behind Lucas when she notices Nathan walk into the hallway. Lucas turns around in the direction she was pointing at and makes eye contact with him as he passes by them. Nathan sees Haley, remembers their morning encounter and winks at her tauntingly. It's an added bonus that the gesture pisses Lucas off.

Lucas looks back at Haley questioningly but she shrugs her shoulders as if to say she has no clue what that's about. They turn back to Nathan, following him with their gaze as he walks over to Brooke, his expression now clearly upset, as he disrupts her conversation with her cheer-friends and lightly pulls her into an empty classroom.

Lucas looks on intrigued.

"I wonder what that's about" Haley tells Lucas.

Lucas mumbles a "yeah" and waves to his best friend as he heads to his class.

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"Nate, what's up?" He doesn't answer right away.

"Hey Brooke? What do you think you're doing?"

Brooke looks at him confused, not understanding why he was upset.

"Uh, Well, I _was _talking to Bevin and Theresa -- "

"I heard about your little stunt in Pucas' car. What the hell was that?" He cuts to the chase.

She looks away from him, expression changing knowing full well what he was getting at. "Oh come on, Nate, that's my signature Brooke-Davis welcoming wagon-thing, it's what I do"

It really was. Every boy knows he's arrived once he's greeted by a half naked Brooke in his car.

"Are you forgetting something?" He looks at her pointedly.

Her smile fades and eyebrows narrow. They hadn't talked about this in a while, managed to avoid the topic altogether lately, to the point where she forgot about it herself. But ever since Lucas joined the team—

"Look, it was completely innocent. I figured it would look suspicious if I _hadn't_ done it" she tried to joke. "It's practically a rite-of-passage, you know that."

"Brooke—"

"Nathan" she cuts him off, placing her hand on his shoulder. "If it makes you feel better, I'll back off."

"Brooke—" he tries to continue.

"I said I'll back off Nate. Let's leave it at that."

He sighs. "Ok" he doesn't push; hearing the genuineness in her voice. He pulls her close to him and kisses her forehead.

As they leave the classroom and walk down the hall, Haley closes her locker door shut, staring into the direction Nathan and Brooke went in. She notices the closeness between the two and momentarily forgets about her own predicament when she sees Nathan whisper something in her ear, making Brooke grin. Whatever it was, it earns him a kiss on the cheek. Its then that Haley's book almost falls, snapping her out of her trance to reflexively hold on to it and brought back to her struggle to stuff it in her backpack.

When her mission is accomplished, she steals one last look towards Nathan and Brooke and gets a weird feeling in her stomach; like she's violating their private moment when she witnesses him give her one of the most genuine smiles she's ever seen. For a womanizer whose signature expressions are limited to smirks and cocky grins, it was surprising to see. She shrugs the feeling off and pulls her backpack on her back, following them to her next class.

Was something going on between the head cheerleader and the Ravens' #1 star?

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Ok! So, I hope this chapter didn't feel too rushed, ive had this on my comp for a few days now but i was never completely satisfied with it. I don't know. Tell me what you think? I sincerely appreciate the reviews! Also, just want to assure you that this is most definitely a Naley story, I Just didn't want rush them getting together...it's going to progress slowly... but hopefully, well worth the wait. The other couples in this story will be Brucas and maybe Jeyton. But remember, all is not always as it seems!

Coming up in the next few chapters:

Revenge on Nathan goes further than intended, making him lose something important to him.

Brooke and Nathan caught in another compromising-looking situation

Nathan and Haley blow-up


	5. Chapter 4: The Enemy Of My Enemy

Disclaimer: The characters do not belong to me but to Mark Shwann.

The italicised sections are flashbacks.

**Chapter Three – The Enemy of My Enemy:**

... Karen's Cafe...

"Morning sunshine" Luke tells his best friend sarcastically as he sees her plop herself down onto a chair, all ruffled.

She mumbles a 'hey' in response.

"You look like something the cat dragged in" he jokes.

"Oh you sweet-talker you. Sure know how to make a gal feel special"

"Hey, you look tired?" he asks more concerned. He'd noticed her acting differently the last few days.

"Yeah. I haven't been sleeping very well lately." She answers vaguely.

"How come?"

"Just have a lot on my mind."

"Anything I can do?"

"Flag down the coffee? " She asks as she looks up at him.

"Anytime"

She offers him a weak smile in response, letting him know she'll be okay. Truth was, she knows he's got enough on his plate.

She needs him more than he knows.

"My hero" she says as he gives her a cup of Joe, as promised.

"Hey Hales...look i know i've been selfish the last couple of weeks –"

She crooks her head, not seeing what he's talking about.

"laying all my problems with Nathan on you, i know it can't be fun listening to me whine about the newest prank he's pulled—"

"Oh Luke, I don't mind. I'm here for you, you know that" she says warmly.

"I know. Just like I hope you know I'm here for you too" he says as he reaches out to squeeze her hand.

The gesture alone wams her heart but she tries to hide it. She doesn't reply because she's scared her voice may sound a few pitches higher than it should so she settles for a nod.

A couple of customers come over and pay for their breakfast and thank Luke on their way out.

"Oh, Luke, by the by" she sits up on her chair, having recovered "we need to meet after the game to discuss mission socially-destroy Nathan " Haley squeals, excited, remembering why she came over to the cafe in the first place.

Lucas chuckles at his friend's enthusiasm. "Nothing like a good plotting to get your creative juices flowing huh?"

"You got that right, especially when It's for the greater good." She laughs. " Anyway, speaking of creative juices, you ready for it Luke?"

"I – I don't know. Last one didn't go so well. It's the first game of the championships. If we don't make this one then we'll be off to a bad start and we can pretty much kiss the championships goodbye."

"Wow, no pressure huh?"

"Tell me about it"

"Listen, don't beat yourself up. You're going to go out there, you're going to play a great game and you're going to put all the other players to shame. I just know it."

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Tree Hill High – Saturday – Game Night – Post Game

"_What the hell man?! Whose side are you on?!" Nathan's voice resonated around the full gym as __an opponent steals the ball and Lucas is unable to stop the opposing team from scoring a basket__. He really wasn't on his game tonight, heck he hadn't made a decent shot since he joined the team. _

"_I was double-teamed, I couldn't get—" Luke tries to explain. _

"_I don't give a shit about your crummy excuses! Man, you're useless! What the hell is wrong with you?! _

_Luke opened his mouth to reply but closed it again. He looks at the crowd and bows his head in shame as he sees the snickering and whispering he was no doubt the subject of. Haley gives him a sympathetic look. "Look, i'm trying-"_

_Nathan scoffs. "Trying? That's not good enough! If you're not cut out for this just say so. You're pathetic, man."_

"_You done?" Lucas tries to act unaffected. _

"_This isn't the Rivercourt. Do you know how many of our futures are riding on this? Just quit the team _already_. Don't drag us all down with you." Nathan continues and throws his arms in the air for effect, looking at him like his solution was the most obvious one in the world. _

_Lucas was starting to get sick and tired of Nathan's rant on him. It's a good thing the whistle blows and Nathan leaves Lucas to go to his position._

"_Start taking notes, punk." Nathan turned back to throw at Lucas. _

Haley shrugs, remembering how Nathan embarrassed Luke in front of the whole school. Haley leans against a post as she stares at the ground beside her, waiting for Lucas to come out of the locker room.

The Ravens' game against the Cougars tonight was pretty brutal, she had to admit. With the addition of the new members and the old getting expelled, the team had yet to adjust to the different techniques of its athletes. The over-eager freshmen and the stuck up sophomores did not mesh well together. Hell, it was a recipe for disaster.

Haley knew Lucas would need a friend tonight. She couldn't stop replaying in her head all the horrible things Nathan said to Lucas tonight, which if anything only reinforced her conviction to put him in his place.

'That guy really needs a dose of his own medicine.' She was lost in thought, more determined than ever.

"Excuse me-"

A group of players dressed in matching green, black and white sweats approach from behind her. One of the players steps closer to her as he calls for her attention.

Haley looks at him, startled.

"Are you new? I haven't seen you cheerleading before" he asks, not recognizing her from previous games.

She looks down at her clothes, not making the connection. She _was_ wearing Luke's varsity jacket and standing outside the boys' locker room. Can't blame a guy for jumping to conclusions.

"Oh, uh, no. I'm not a cheerleader...Haley James" she says offering him a smile.

The guy nods. "You look good in blue. It suits you."

"Thanks…" She looks away, not comfortable at all the eyes on her.

"I'm Damian"

Haley looks back at him, shaking the outstretched hand in front of her. He wasn't bad to look out, she admitted.

The locker doors open and Haley looks up, hoping it'd be Luke.

"Are you lost punk?" the player's expression quickly hardens as he sees Damien.

Damien smiles silently "Nathan Scott."

Haley roles her eyes at his presence. "What? You two know each other?"

Nathan ignores the question. "What the hell are you doing here? Don't you know better than that?" he warns, feeling his fists contract. "Came to scour the competition, West?"

"Hardly. After tonight's game, I would consider you more a guaranteed victory."

Nathan winces at the mention of tonight's game. He was right, they really sucked. It pisses him off that Damian of all people was there to witness it.

"You still missing your free throws?" Nathan tries to hit back.

"Who cares? They don't show free throws on _Sports Centre_. You know what else they don't show?... Ravens."

The group laughs behind him. Nathan looks to the ground and up again, avoiding Damien's gaze.

"I heard you guys lost your shooter along with half your team. So, I guess your season's over huh?"

"Nope. Strong as always. Even at our weakest we're still better than you" Nathan says as confidently as he can, folding his arms.

"Well… If tonight's game was any indication, you guys are done for. Unless you win the next three tournaments, you're not making post-season and you're _not_ gonna win next week's tournament… because we are. We're undefeated.

Nathan scoffs and smirks "Do you suffer from amnesia or something because we beat your pathetic asses last year and the year before that and we're going to do it again next weekend. Just keep practising your free shots, punk" Nathan taunts as he turns to leave.

He stops for a second, seemingly pondering something finally walking back, and pulls Haley by the arm away from Damien and his crew. "Let's go, James."

"Uh, excuse me, what are you doing?" She says as she pulls her arm away from his grasp. 'Who the hell does this guy think he is?'

"Getting you away from this guy. Trust me, he's a dick." He answers matter-of-factedly.

"Well he can't be a bigger dick than _you_."

Nathan shakes his head at the girl in front of him. 'Is she serious right now?' She could be really stupid. He considers leaving her there with Damian but then he remembers that no girl deserves the wrath of Damien West so he tries again.

"Takes one to know one, right? So believe me when I say, that guy is scum"

There's a hint of something she doesn't recognize in his plea, which leaves her confused, and lets her know that there's more than petty rivalry between him and Damien but all she sees is him berating Luke for things that aren't even his fault so she refuses to believe this guy is being half decent and genuinely looking out for her.

"I can take care of myself" she says as she steps away from him.

"Fine. Suit yourself." He gives up, not caring and leaves.

"Hey, Scott" Damian calls mockingly, having watched the exchange. "How's Brooke?"

Damian knows exactly what buttons to push and he succeeds because it takes Nathan half a second to turn around at the mention of Brooke's name, about to pounce this kid's head until he bleeds from his ass until Whitey comes out of the locker room and looks back and forth from the two boys and asks "gentlemen, everything all right here?" more as a warning than a concern.

Nathan grits his teeth and fixes Damian's collar menacingly and begrudgingly moves his hands to his sides. "We're cool coach, just talking"

"Keep the foreplay for the court, boys" he warns then heads to the parking lot.

"You better watch yourself, West. If I ever catch you so much as whisper her name again or look her way, I will beat you to death" Nathan threatens.

Damian seems unaffected, grins cockily, glad that he struck a nerve of his long time rival. Nathan shoots Haley a glance before leaving too. "Don't say I didn't warn you."

Damien chuckles. "What a bitch" he says to his friends then says "sorry" for swearing in front of a lady. "It was a pleasure meeting you" he takes Haley's hand and kisses it. The gesture makes her blush. He starts to leave with his crew but she calls him back. "Hey wait. Let's talk..." her curiousity peeked once more at the mention of Brooke and what it meant to Nathan. "Alone".

Maybe Damien could be of help in mission DNS;

Destroy Nathan Scott.

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Later that night – Nathan's room

Nathan was sitting frustrated on his bed, having gotten in yet another fight with Peyton over Lucas. Things had escalated to the point where Peyton stormed out of his car and he's pretty sure they're broken up now for the millionth time.

"_Unbelievable" says Peyton as she backs away from Nathan's lips, feeling him laughing as she tries to make out with him. _

_"What?"Nathan asks. "Peyton, did you see how bad he sucked?"_

_"So?" she says put off by him right now._

_"He was horrible. I've never seen a guy play so bad."_

_" And you enjoyed that?"_

_"Well, hell yeah. Didn't you?"_

_Peyton looks away, unimpressed._

_Nathan doesn't like her reaction, reads more into it. "What is this, Peyton? Do you like this guy or something?"_

_Peyton laughs and starts moving towards him again._

_"You mean more than my boyfriend who I'm trying to make out with right now?"_

_He bobs his head back and away from her touch. "Well go put some ice on it. You ever think I might want to talk?"_

_Peyton moves back, not believing this coming out of his mouth._

_"No, you don't. You want to celebrate a public humiliation and I'm sorry, that's a little played out." She was seriously getting fed up._

_"Oh and being with you isn't?" he hits back, not thinking before the words slip out of his mouth. He was still riled up from his encounter with Damien, but of course he can't tell her why._

_Peyton glares at him in disbelief and gets out of the car a moment later._

_"Oh, Peyton, come on, I was joking."_

He picks up his phone and dials her number to apoiogize to her but as soon as he hears it ring he hangs up abruptly. He doesn't want to give in so quick, needs more time to convince himself its the right thing to do.

Instead, he sits there, staring at the phone in front of him until he decides to try calling his dad, needing the distraction.

"Dad?" Nathan sighs relieved, hearing someone pick up at the other end of the line. "Finally! Where the hell have you been? I've been trying to reach you!" Nathan gets frustrated, remembering how hard its been to get a hold of him. He'd called Dan three dozen times and had even filled up his voicemail. He couldn't believe it was this hard to a hold of his father. What if this was life or death?

"Cool your hormones, son. What the hell is going on?" Dan replies annoyed.

"Why haven't you been answering your phone?"

"I've been busy with meetings"

Nathan rolls his eyes, angry at the lack of effort his father put into trying to cover up his affair as he hears a woman giggle in the background.

"What's so urgent?" Dan asks, distracted.

Nathan almost doesn't want to tell his father anymore, but this was too big to handle on his own.

"You're not going to believe what mom did" he starts, getting riled up again at the mere thought of it.

"What did she do now?" Dan asks, suddenly paying a little more attention to what his son was saying, chuckling under his breath wondering what his nut of a wife has been up to.

Nathan sighs. "Trust me, this is bigger than anything else she's done... I don't know what she was thinking turning the house into a homeless shelter—"

"_What?!"_ Dan interrupts him.

"She invited Karen and _Pucas _to live with us."

Dan chokes out the mouthful he had taken in and starts coughing strenuously after hearing those words come out of Nate's mouth, trying to catch his breath.

"What did you just say?" he says once he's capable, trying to keep calm, not believing he'd heard right.

"You heard me right, Dad" Nathan confirms. "She's nuts! You have to do something!"

"Wha-- Why the hell would she do that?" He truly was baffled, trying to process what his son had just said, not comprehending what would possess her to do this. He tries to come up with justifications in his head for why she would do this, and all he can conclude is that she's doing this to stick it to him.

He pushes away the hand roaming up his thigh and looks at the woman curtly, scaring her away.

"Don't worry, son. I'm not going to let that happen" he says determined, sitting up straighter in his chair. There simply was no way.

Nathan scoffs, shaking his head. "They've been living there for two weeks!"

Dan literally feels a vein pop. "What?!" He yells into the phone, followed by curse words.

"Thank you!" Nathan gratefully replies, feeling relief wash over him. Finally, someone as appalled at the situation as he is.

"Why the hell didn't you tell me?!" Dan bellows.

"Dad!" Nathan scolds. It's not like he hasn't been trying to reach him the last couple of weeks.

"Shut up and let me think for a second..." he says as he realises it was his own fault. He had after all decided to enjoy his time away by cutting all ties to the outside world.

Dan unconsciously starts scratching his arm in rapid movements, leaving marks, the motion relieving some of his anger.

He nods his head fuming like a crazy person, all the while thinking there is no way in hell he's letting his wife have the upper hand.

"There's a silver lining to every cloud, son... This may actually work to your advantage" he finally concludes. 'It has to' he thinks.

"Great, have you lost it now too? How do you figure that, dad?" Maybe calling his dad was a mistake, Nathan starts to doubt his decision.

A conniving smile starts to spread on Dan's face as he rejoices in his own words, thoughts occurring to him.

"Keep your friends close, and your enemies closer"

Nathan is unimpressed, unlike Dan who feels as if his words were gospel. "Meaning?"

"Meaning – get close to him, Nate..." He takes a piece of paper and crumbles it with force, thinking of Lucas, Deb and the situation. "You get close to him son... Find his weakness and exploit it."

Nate's head bobs backwards. This wasn't what he was expecting to hear.

"You want me to _what_?"

"Listen carefully son." Dan starts, wanting to get his point accross. "There are two things you can do; you can either sit back and sulk like a baby who didn't get what he wants as you watch Lucas take over your spot on the team and your life" he dramatized, catching his son's attention who was picturing the scenario Dan was laying out for him, "or you can make the most out of this situation and be resilient; rise to the occasion. You need to get close to the bastard; make him think you want to become brothers. Have him confide in you, learn his deepest, darkest fears...and then you crush him. Crush him like the coackroach he is. You got me?"

Nathan feels a chill at the maniacal tone in his father's voice. Damn, the man was evil.

"Dad" he hesitated before continuing. "This _is_ your son we are talking about." He was actually felt sorry for the kid.

Dan shakes his head no.

"As far as i'm concerned, I only have one son. Don't make me regret choosing you, son."

The last bit did not go unnoticed by Nathan. Of course, Dan had to throw that in there. As if he _meant_ to choose Nathan. Never mind that it could have just as easily been him in Lucas' shoes.

"No way. Can't do it. He'd never fall for it."

Lucas was a lot of things. But the boy wasn't stupid. He'd see right through him. Besides, no way was he going to crawl to him like a bitch. He had too much pride for that.

"Don't be a girl, son. Don't let your feelings for this kid get in the way of everything you've worked for your whole life." Dan continued to push.

"I don't know, dad" He remained hesitant still.

"You have nothing to lose and everything to gain. Get close to him, Nate. Only then can you be rid of him. "

Nathan considered it for a moment. The end might just make the means worthwhile. "How long am I supposed to keep that up, exactly?"

Dan smiled, content. He knew he had his son now. "As long as it takes"

"No way. Two weeks. That's it. And when you come back, i'm moving in with you." He tells Dan matter-of-factedly.

"All right, Nate... Don't let me down. "

Nathan shakes his head as he hangs up the phone. Leave it to Dan to make it all about him somehow.

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Outside Haley's house

"So, let me get this straight – you want to get back at Nathan Scott, and you want me to help you?"

"Yep. That about sums it up. From what I could see, there isn't exactly any love lost between you two so it shouldn't be too hard for you...What's that about anyway?"

He looks at her smugly. "Long story." Damien considers her proposal for a second. "How do I know this is for real? Why should I trust you?"he asks unsure.

"Look, all i can say is he's made my best friend's life a living hell for too long and now he needs to see what it's like to be on the receiving end. Will you help me?"

"Fine, all right. This could work. But how far you willing to go?

"I'll do whatever it takes"

" Even if it means helping us win the tournament next week?"

"Well, how could I do that?" she asks confused.

"Don't worry about the details for now. Tell me, are you in all the way?"

Haley thinks about it. If she can help Damien win the tournament next week by somehow making it Nathan's fault, than that's pretty perfect actually now that she thinks about it. He'll see what its like to be the one letting his team down.

"Yeah. I'm in."

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Hey guys! Hope you enjoyed the plotting in this chapter...What are Haley and Damien going to do when they join forces? How will it turn out? Does Haley know what she's getting into? Please Please PLEASE review!! :D


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